A DALES swimming pool project is under threat because of a lack of council cash.

Harrogate Borough Council is keen to support the building of a £1.18m swimming pool, at Pateley Bridge, to end journeys for a dip by Nidderdale residents to either the spa town or Ripon, and has been working in partnership with North Yorkshire County Council and Upper Nidderdale High School, in whose grounds the building would be.

A fundraising initiative scheme has also been up and running for several years.

It has gathered £120,000 towards a £200,000 target, but its cash is all that has been banked in readiness for the final bill for a 20-metre pool.

Although grants are to be sought from the Sport England Lottery Fund, the Foundation for Sport and the Arts and other sources including Europe, the likelihood is that Harrogate council would have to find a minimum of £280,000 to get the project off the ground, and then fund running costs as well.

The council's cabinet will debate the issues on Tuesday when it will receive strong warnings from senior officials of the financial risks involved and the possibility of the council's share of the bill ending up even higher.

Head of sport and leisure Andy McCormick said the corporate management team had looked at the pool project and concluded it could not be afforded unless it replaced a current spending priority.

Refurbishment of Harrogate's Royal Hall and a replacement for the town's Oxford Street multi-storey car park, which is also showing wear and tear are the top priorities for cash.